Billets of steel and other metals are elongated articles of square or occasionally diamond-shaped cross section. For various reasons it is often desirable to turn or rotate such billets about their longitudinal axes, usually by 90.degree. after they are deposited hot on a mill table or similar conveyor and travel therealong. Turning a billet 90.degree. about one edge, of course, displaces it transversely of the table by the thickness of the billet, so that it must be slid back by that amount if it is to remain in the same line of travel as before. It is desirable that the billet turning apparatus be constructed so that it does no obstruct or encumber the mill or conveyor table when it is not in use.
My invention has as its principal object to provide an apparatus for turning or rotating a billet about its longitudinal axis without displacing it transversely. It is another object of my invention to provide such apparatus which turns billets traveling along the table without interrupting their travel. It is still another object to provide such apparatus that leaves the table completely clear when the turning apparatus is not in use. It is yet another object of my invention to provide such apparatus in which the angle of rotation of the billet is adjustable. Other objects of my invention will appear in the course of the description thereof which follows.